My life on the borderlands.

Tag Archives: prayer

Mister Rand has asked us to share our perceptions of the power of belief to tweak probability lines and render some outcomes more probable than they might have been without the actions of belief upon them. Belief—which can be described, if not precisely defined, as [involving] emotional and intellectual investment in a specific [concept], person, cause, or positive [goal]—is often used interchangeably with the words “faith” and “trust”. As we see things, however, belief is closer in meaning to a way of seeing the world that shapes expectations and provides a framework within which the believer interprets everything that happens.

There are some people, for example, who believe that if they ask their deity to provide them with a convenient parking place in a crowded or busy lot, that parking space will materialize almost at once. This belief is buttressed by those times when indeed a parking space does materialize within several minutes of the prayer. Those times when the parking space does not materialize are then interpreted according to the framework of the belief. So if the driver’s belief includes the belief that their God rewards them when they do something good and chastises them when they fail to do something good, the driver may conclude that the parking space did not materialize at once because the driver had done something to piss God off.

Or if the driver’s belief … includes the notion that their God is unconditionally loving, the driver can assume that, with a finite number of convenient parkings spaces available at any given moment, their God had denied our driver the parking space because God know that another driver… had a deeper and greater need for … the gift of the parking spot. Because the God knows the big picture, and knows that, in the most probable future available, if our second driver [had been] denied the parking spot [prayed for by] our first driver, a probability line would have come into being that, down the road a ways, might bring the second driver into disaster. In this way the first driver, who believes in an unconditionally loving deity, can console him- or herself that somehow the greater good was served by the desired parking spot going to somebody else.

Mister Rand asks, “Can belief in a desired outcome draw to the believer a future in which that desired outcome is more probable? Or does a person’s beliefs have no power to affect probability lines unless the believer takes practical steps to make the desired future take place?” Mister Rand [refers to] the movie “The Secret”, which claims that if one believes strongly and vividly enough in a future where one’s deepest desires are satisfied, then that future is assuredly going to happen just as one hoped it would. Desire a bicycle? Pretend you already have it, [says “The Secret”]. Imagine as vividly as you can how the bicycle looks, how it feels under the hand, and how it makes you feel riding it. Do this long enough, and strongly enough, says “The Secret”, and the bicycle will come to you—possibly from an unexpected direction and with no further efforts on your part. “Does this visualization/manifestation technique really work?” asks Mister Rand.

Our answer to this is, sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t. But one can increase the likelihood of that bicycle materializing by bringing in at least three other persons who share one’s belief in “The Secret” technique. All four believers sitting together, praying for the same outcome or visualizing the same good fortune, often subtly tweaks a probability line so that the desired outcome does takes place.

According to our observations in the life of Mister Rand and the lives of those he has encountered, the more persons believe in a desired outcome, the more likely it will materialize, as long as certain conditions are met (see below).

If one brings in a faith circle to assist in the manifestation process, and still the desired outcome does not materialize, it may be because

materializing the desired outcome might prove harmful to the believer or the greater good;

there are additional actions the believer should take in order to position him- or herself to receive the desired outcome, actions which the believer might be reluctant to take because of fear, laziness, or pride;

deep down the believer believes that he or she does not deserve to experience the desired outcome, and so unconsciously is blocking its manifestation;

there is another outcome which the believer desires as much or more than the outcome the faith circle is attempting to materialize, and the materialization of one outcome would cancel out the likelihood of the other materializing;

what the believer wants would, if manifested, violate the laws of spacetime;

the mass consciousness of the faith group, family, or society in which the believer is embedded is bent on materializing a future incompatible with the outcome the believer desires;

or a combination of the above factors.

Whatever the outcome, one can turn over the matter to Divine Love, which, being complete in Itself, desires only your good without thought of thanks, worship, or return. Ask questions, expect answers from any direction at the proper time, and your way through the dilemma will be made clear.

Mister Rand has asked us to speak to him and you concerning the matter of prayer; i.e., asking Higher Power, or God, or Goddess, or the Universe, or the Greater Self, or the Buddha, or Invisible Sky Friend, to intervene in physical reality in order to bring the one who prays a desired outcome. The issue is more complicated than perhaps it first appears, not because prayer is complicated, but because the reality that permits prayer to be answered takes some explaining.

We can assert with confidence, based upon the experience of our incarnated selves and the selves of others, that when certain inner and outer circumstances are met, requests for divine intervention inhuman affairs are frequently answered. And the answers, as certain 12th Step Program literature reminds us, can be (1) yes; (2) no; or (3) not yet. Of course, the latter two answers are not the ones desirous to he or she who prays unless he or she who prays has the confidence that their Higher Power is unconditionally loving and supremely wise. Then “not yet” or “no” can be perceived as what they are, which is to say blessings in disguise.

How often has Mister Rand wished sincerely for something and that something has not materialized no matter how hard he has worked for it? Critics often jump to the conclusion, “You have not had your prayer answered because you do not have enough faith;” or, “You have not had your prayer answered because you are not praying to the correct deity;” or, “You have not had your prayer answered because you have not put in the necessary effort to do your part;” or, “You have not had your prayer answered because you have sinned in this life or a past life and your suffering is the result of that sin.” And although in some cases, perhaps, these objections might have some small merit, in most cases we observe that the reasons sincere prayers are not answered immediately is a combination of factors, chief of which very often is, “The time is not yet right for the experience you are praying for to download from the Dream State into physical reality.”

What, Mister Rand asks, are the optimal conditions for a desired experience to manifest as the result of sincere prayers? We see them as sevenfold:

(1) There must be room in your life for the experience you are requesting. That is, you must be entirely ready to enjoy this path you have chosen. This sounds obvious, but the human heart has many chambers, and in some of those chambers, fear and shame rule. For Mister Rand, it is fear that if something good happens to him, something bad will happen as a way of God punishing him or physical reality exerting itself to bring his good fortune back to a state of nonrealization. For everything is connected. There is also shame: Mister Rand is frequently ashamed that he enjoys so much prosperity compared to the nations of the world. So adding more prosperity to that which he has already seems to him unjust.

(2) There must be sufficient time allotted for the experience to manifest. Another factor that can clutter the space to be occupied by the desired experience is the factor of time. Physical reality is to all intents and purposes linear, that is, it progresses slowly and methodically from one choice to another to ‘final’ outcome. At 64 Mister Rand might wish to be a millionaire stage actor, but most persons do not become millionaires overnight, and success in theater often takes years to develop. In other words, Mister Rand’s wish to be a millionaire stage actor might have been appropriate to pray for when he was in his 30s rather than now, when he is in his 60s.

(3) There must be trust in a Power greater than oneself, and a willingness to turn the results of one’s prayer over to that benevolent Power. It is often said in Mister Rand’s twelve-step group that God answers prayers one of three ways: “yes,” “no, I have something better in mind for you,” or “not yet.” Many individuals assume, when their prayers are not answered, that God is angry with them, or that God does not exist. These conclusions do not take into account the limitations of human understanding of the vast intricate network of potentialities that makes up the web of coincidence and meaning humans call spacetime or physical reality. If one desires the assistance of one’s God—whether one sees that God as a master, parent, consoler-protector, transcendent consciousness, or mythic symbol of the internal creative power of the person praying—then one must be willing to relinquish control of the prayer’s outcome to that God, confident that in time understanding of the desired manifestation or nonmanifestation will come if one is patient. And one of the major things one must trust is that if one’s God says, “No, I have something better in mind for you,” that it is the truth. For often Mister Rand wants something that he thinks will give him a certain experience, but his Higher Power knows that it will not. If Rand trusts that Higher Power, he can ask, “If something else will give me the experience I desire, please show me.”

(4) One must pray for what one truly wants, not what one thinks one deserves or can get. And one must be willing to face, listen to, and soften around any intrusive fears, shame, anger, envy, and catastrophic thinking that may come up when one asks for what one truly wants. As Mister Rand has learned to say, one does not have to be better or worse than anyone else in order to deserve the same amount of care, kindness, health, love, and safety as anyone else.

(5) One must persist in one’s prayers. Mister Rand informs his clients that in the Greek of the New Testament, the quote attributed to Jesus that in English begins, “Ask and ye shall receive” is more literally translated “Ask and keep on asking and ye shall receive.”

(6) One must take responsibility for being a co-creator with God of the experience one desires. In other words, one will enjoy faster and truer and surer results if one prays, “Higher Power, please show me today what step today to take, the step that will get me one step closer to my goal.” Some may say, “This is blasphemy, to treat God as an equal.” We say, God does not have low self-esteem. God does not need praise. God does not need worship. God does not need sacrifices. These are all human needs projected onto God. God is Love in all parts of God’s self, and thinks nothing of God’s self, but only of God’s creation, and how God can wean it back into God’s loving embrace.

(7) Consider this truth: that only in spacetime can there be the illusion that one is imperfect, incomplete, vulnerable to diminishment, and able to suffer loss. In the great Light reaches, where the core of each entity dwells (including you), there is full awareness that one is completely filled to the brim with Love, and that Love cannot be diminished or removed by enemy, plague, misfortune, or time. When Mister Rand had his vision of the Plane of Superimplicate Order in fall of 2013, he experienced it as a calm, quiet, still place of pure consciousness that felt entirely familiar. And that is because he had briefly awakened from the dream of spacetime to reconnect with the wonderful fact that in the end, no matter what happens to the body or waking mind, one is and will always be safe. •

The sixth spoke of the Wheel of Creation I call communication. In the Wheel diagram it lies directly opposite the hub from the passion spoke, and this is no accident. When enthusiasm for a project flags, one of the best ways to revive that enthusiasm is to talk about it to someone supportive who shares similar enthusiasms.

Communication also factors into making a dream come true because, since dreams are realized via interdependence rather than independence, I must be able to share my ideal vision with others in order to find resources to help me take action on my dream realization strategies. How I communicate my vision—through words, spoken or written, through images, through groups, through ads, through talks, workshops, or through one-on-one confabs—is important, too. Some visions are suitable for mass marketing and others aren’t. Talking to others who have realized dreams similar to my own can give me clues to the best way to build a bridge between my heart’s desires and those who can help me fulfill them.

Also bear in mind that some people are doers, some are feelers, and some are primarily knowers. Doers tend to respond to concrete descriptions and bottom line facts: who, what, where, how much, and what’s in it for me? Feelers tend to respond to personal contact, anecdote, and individual reaching-out. Knowers tend to respond to the big picture, subtlety, nuance, and elegantly constructed, patterned presentations.

A final aspect of the communication spoke is the need for me to keep up a running dialogue throughout the dream-manifestation process with my Greater Self. If you are an atheist materialist, you may think of your Greater Self as your rational adult self. If you are religious, you may think of your Greater Self as God, your oversoul, or a spiritual figure for whom you feel a connection. Ask for your Greater Self to send you serendipitous opportunities to clarify your passion, firm your beliefs, refine your strategies, take more efficient action, and find deeper sources of support. Then let go of the need to control exactly how, when, where, and from what direction these opportunities arise. Try it! It works!

My Previous Posts

How To Contact Rand B. Lee

About Rand B. Lee, The Rational Psychic

Since the mid-1980s Rand B. Lee has served an international clientele as a professional psychic specializing in life-purpose, career, love, wellness, relationships, spiritual development, prosperity, recovery, the Tarot and trancework. Rand works with individuals, couples, and groups in person, over the telephone, or via Skype.